The cooperation between Lahti, Helsinki, Tampere, Turku and Jyväskylä builds on Finland’s and the cities’ own strengths. The cities would prefer to have several medium-sized events rather than a large-scale competition that is organised less frequently.
Five Finnish cities are stepping up their cooperation to raise the profile of Finland in the hosting of sporting events.
In addition to Lahti, which is coordinating the project, Helsinki, Tampere, Turku and Jyväskylä are also involved. The Sport Event Management Finland project is managed by the tourism company Lahti Region Oy.
The project has received funding from the Ministry of Education and Culture since 2019. The aim is to highlight Tampere’s expertise in international ice hockey competitions or Lahti’s experience in major skiing events, for example. The participating cities will present themselves on a dedicated English-language website.
It is also about communicating Finland’s image.
A steady flow of events generates millions in tourism revenue
The goal of the project is to bring international sports events to different cities in Finland and to increase the recognition of Finland as a country of sports events. Continuity is important.
– Various events already bring millions of euros in tourism income to the regions. It is better that there are medium-sized events every year and a bigger snowball starts to roll down from it, than to wait for the same big one for years, says Jani Backman.
The targeted events are not only focused on top sports, but the spectrum has expanded. International event organizers and rights-owning brands have also emerged in the industry, which should be attracted.
– Groups of friends move and junior tournaments bring impact and outdoor events in nature increase their popularity, Mikko Saarinen knows.
– We need to build Finland’s image and market our sports expertise. For example, for next summer’s Ironman WC, every athlete will come to Lahti to do the performance of a lifetime. Lahti has 100 years of experience in responsible service design, where restaurant and accommodation services and the entire chain work for the best of the athlete, and we want to develop this further.